CORE STORY: Indiana teen accused of three murders claims he was “purging”

Between May 12 and May 15 in Indianapolis, IN, three men were shot and killed in cold blood. Jonathan Cruz, a 19-year-old Indianan, was arrested on May 16 on other felony charges, including robbery and intimidation, and subsequently charged with their murders.

Court documents now reveal that Cruz allegedly told a witness he was “purging,” during the three-day period Billy Boyd, Jay Higginbotham, and Jose Ruiz were murdered.

The Purge series — 2013’s The Purge, 2014’s The Purge: Anarchy, and the upcoming The Purge: Election Year — is modelled on a bleak vision of a near-future America where the US Government has designated one night a year in while all crimes, including murder, are legal.

Prosecutors say that due to the vicious and senseless circumstances of the murders he’s charged with, Cruz could face the death sentence or life in prison without parole.

Universal Pictures, the movie studio behind the Purge trilogy, has yet to comment on the court documents. It’s unknown how or if Cruz’s alleged statement will affect The Purge: Election Year‘s planned release on July 1.